吲哚——种间及跨界信号分子新成员

吲哚作为一种典型的氮杂环芳烃化合物,在自然界中广泛存在。近年来,越来越多的研究表明吲哚具有一定的生物活性,是一种新型种间及跨界的信号分子。研究发现,吲哚不仅可以调节微生物的毒性、耐药性、生物膜形成以及群感效应等生理生化行为,调控植物生长发育和防御系统的形成过程,还能够影响动物的肠道炎症、细胞氧化压力及荷尔蒙分泌等生理健康。因此吲哚在微生物代谢、动物健康和植物生长等多个方面扮演了重要角色,具有重要的生物学及生态学双重意义。文中综述了吲哚从生物代谢到信号传递的研究历史,及其在微生物种内或种间以及微生物-动植物之间跨界的信号传导与调控作用的研究进展,旨在为揭示复杂环境中吲哚生物代谢及信号调控的生物学意义与生态学机制提供重要的理论指导。     

吲哚作为细菌细胞间信号分子的研究进展

吲哚广泛存在于自然界,目前已知超过145种革兰氏阳性和阴性细菌能产生吲哚,其中包括许多病原菌。随着细菌密度感应系统及其信号分子作用机制研究的深入,吲哚已被证实是肠道病原菌如致病性大肠杆菌、迟缓爱德华氏菌、霍乱弧菌等一类细胞间重要的信号分子,并参与细菌的多种生理活动,如毒力、抗药性、生物膜形成、运动性、质粒稳定性、抗酸性、孢子产生等。更为重要的是,吲哚及其衍生物还参与协调菌群竞争,有益于人体肠道菌群平衡和免疫系统。本文在吲哚作为细胞间信号分子参与迟缓爱德华氏菌的毒力、抗药性、生物膜形成和运动性的研究基础上,对近年来吲哚作为细菌细胞间信号分子的研究进展进行了综述。随着吲哚作用机制的进一步揭示,将有助于新型抗病原菌感染策略的研发和生物工程方面的应用。     

解淀粉芽胞杆菌HZ-12中ysnE参与吲哚-3-乙酸合成的代谢途径研究

【目的】吲哚-3-乙酸是调控植物生长发育和生理活动的重要激素,吲哚-3-乙酸N-乙酰转移酶YsnE在吲哚-3-乙酸合成中发挥重要作用,本研究拟解析解淀粉芽胞杆菌中YsnE参与吲哚-3-乙酸合成的代谢途径。【方法】通过基因ysnE缺失和强化表达,分析ysnE对吲哚-3-乙酸合成影响,结合吲哚-3-乙酸合成中间物(吲哚丙酮酸、吲哚乙酰胺、色胺和吲哚乙腈)添加和体外酶转化实验,解析ysnE参与吲哚-3-乙酸合成的代谢途径。【结果】明确了YsnE在解淀粉芽胞杆菌HZ-12吲哚-3-乙酸合成中发挥重要作用。发现ysnE缺失菌株中的吲哚丙酮酸、吲哚乙酰胺和吲哚乙腈利用显著降低,揭示了YsnE主要发挥吲哚丙酮酸脱羧酶YclB和吲哚乙酰胺水解酶/腈水解酶/腈水合酶YhcX的功能,并通过参与吲哚丙酮酸、吲哚乙酰胺和吲哚乙腈途径来影响吲哚-3-乙酸合成。【结论】初步揭示了YsnE通过影响吲哚丙酮酸、吲哚乙酰胺和吲哚乙腈途径参与吲哚-3-乙酸合成的代谢机理,为吲哚-3-乙酸合成途径解析和代谢工程育种构建吲哚-3-乙酸高产菌株奠定了基础。     

高通量测序解析大青叶有效成分的生物合成途径

中药大青叶是菘蓝的干燥叶片,主要活性物质为吲哚类化合物,包括靛蓝、靛玉红、色胺酮等,以上吲哚类化合物的生物合成起始于色氨酸途径,目前在植物中的合成机制还未完全阐明.本研究以成熟菘蓝叶片为研究对象,对茉莉酸甲酯诱导的叶片进行了转录组分析,对已知途径进行了转录组注释,并对未解析途径进行了预测分析.分别获得了色氨酸代谢途径中色氨酸、吲哚乙酸、吲哚苷和萜类吲哚生物碱合成几个代谢支路中16个催化步骤的38个编码基因.通过共表达网络分析,预测转录因子bHLH125可能对吲哚途径具有核心调控作用;CYP2A6-1和CYP735A2等蛋白可能催化生成靛蓝、靛玉红、色胺酮前体的羟基化反应,对这两个蛋白与底物分子的结合进行分子对接建模,均显示对吲哚分子具有较好的结合力.本研究为后续开展菘蓝代谢调控和育种,以及开展吲哚类物质合成生物学研究提供候选基因.     

钵水母水螅体横裂诱发条件及调控机制研究进展

横裂是水螅体世代向水母体世代转变的重要阶段.对水螅体横裂诱发条件及调控分子机制的研究不仅对水母爆发生态学和水母人工繁育具有重要意义,而且对比较研究两栖类、昆虫以及刺胞动物等具有复杂生活史生物的变态分子机制起源也具有很好的理论价值.现有研究表明,诱发水螅体横裂的自然环境因素有温度、光照、盐度和共生虫黄藻等,不同门类水母的横裂方式以及环境诱导因素各不相同.能够诱导水螅体横裂的化学因素有吲哚类化合物、9-顺式维甲酸、碘元素和过氧化氢等,其中吲哚类化合物对绝大多数水母水螅体都有诱导作用.尽管水螅体横裂的分子机制尚未明晰,但对海月水母的研究表明,RxR信号通路以及一种横裂诱导激素前体假定蛋白CL390在水母横裂过程中起着重要的作用,提示水母变态分子机制与两栖类和昆虫在分子水平上存在一定程度的共性.     

COI1参与茉莉酸调控拟南芥吲哚族芥子油苷生物合成过程

芥子油苷是一类具有防御作用的植物次生代谢产物,外源激素茉莉酸对吲哚族芥子油苷的合成具有强烈的诱导作用,但茉莉酸调控吲哚族芥子油苷生物合成的分子机制并不清楚。以模式植物拟南芥(Arabidopsis thaliana)的野生型和coi1-22、coi1-23两种突变体为研究材料,通过茉莉酸甲酯(MeJA)处理,比较了拟南芥野生型和coi1突变体植株吲哚族芥子油苷含量、吲哚族芥子油苷合成前体色氨酸的生物合成基因(ASA1、TSA1和TSB1)、吲哚族芥子油苷生物合成基因(CYP79B2、CYP79B3和CYP83B1)及调控基因(MYB34和MYB51)的表达对MeJA的响应差异,由此确定茉莉酸信号通过COI1蛋白调控吲哚族芥子油苷生物合成,即茉莉酸信号通过信号开关COI1蛋白作用于转录因子MYB34和MYB51,进而调控吲哚族芥子油苷合成基因CYP79B2、CYP79B3、CYP83B1和前体色氨酸的合成基因ASA1、TSA1、TSB1。并且推断,COI1功能缺失后,茉莉酸信号可能通过其他未知调控因子或调控途径激活MYB34转录因子从而调控下游基因表达。     

高等植物对氨基酸态氮的吸收与利用研究进展

植物能够在不经矿化的情况下直接吸收利用环境中的分子态氨基酸.氨基酸作为植物和微生物的优良碳源和氮源,二者对其吸收存在着激烈竞争,氨基酸态氮来源广、半衰期短的特点使其具有巨大的流通量.运用氮同位素示踪方法研究氨基酸对植物的氮营养贡献一直是国内外学者研究的热点,对揭示土壤肥力本质具有重要意义.本文对不同生态系统中氨基酸形态特征、代谢机制及营养贡献进行了简要综述,分析了氨基酸态氮在植物-土壤-微生物系统中的循环机制及生物有效性等方面研究现状和发展趋势,并提出了土壤氨基酸生物有效性环境调控、氨基酸碳-氮代谢及提高农田生态系统有机氮管理等待解决的科学问题.     

植物激素与芥子油苷在生物合成上的相互作用

植物激素在植物的生长发育中起着关键性作用,芥子油苷是一类重要的次生代谢物质。植物激素与芥子油苷之间存在复杂的相互作用。生长素与吲哚类芥子油苷在生物合成上存在着相互作用。植物防卫信号分子与芥子油苷之间也存在相互作用,茉莉酸强烈诱导吲哚类芥子油苷生物合成相关基因CYP7982和CYP7983的表达,从而诱导吲哚-3-甲基芥子油苷和N-甲氧吲哚-3-甲基芥子油苷等吲哚类芥子油苷的生成,水杨酸和乙烯则能轻度诱导4-甲氧吲哚-3-甲基芥子油苷的生成。植物防卫信号转导途径相互作用以精细调节不同种类吲哚类芥子油苷的生成。     

色氨酸, 天然产物生物合成中的重要结构单元

氨基酸作为生物体内组成生命物质的小分子化合物, 在天然产物生物合成中扮演了非常重要的作用。色氨酸含有一个独特的吲哚环, 相对复杂的吲哚环平面结构使得色氨酸相比其他氨基酸具有更多的修饰空间。在微生物天然产物生物合成研究中, 色氨酸及其衍生物经常作为组成模块参与到天然产物的生物合成中, 本文概述了色氨酸几种不同的生物修饰方式, 包括烷基化修饰、卤化修饰、羟基化修饰、以及吲哚环的开环重排反应等。分析并总结色氨酸在天然产物生物合成中的作用可以增加我们对天然产物结构多样性的认识和推动天然产物生物合成机制的研究。     

细菌溶血磷脂的生物合成及生物学功能

溶血磷脂(lysophospholipids, LPLs)是细胞膜中的一类脂质代谢中间产物，主要由磷脂分子被水解后生成。LPL的生物学功能与其前体磷脂有明显的区别。在真核细胞中，LPL是一种参与多种胞内生物信号调控的重要活性分子，但在细菌中，LPL的生物学功能还未被充分揭示。LPL通常是细菌细胞膜中的次要组分，在环境压力条件下其含量可显著升高。除了参与细胞膜磷脂代谢，LPL被认为在细菌环境适应性及致病性中发挥重要作用。其在细胞膜中的累积可以显著提高细菌在环境压力下的存活及增殖效率，同时还是细菌感染过程中重要的信号分子。近期有研究表明，LPL可能是细菌新发现的潜在毒力因子。本文因此将结合最新研究数据，对不同种类LPL的从头合成通路以及LPL在细菌抵御环境压力和细菌-宿主互作等方面所发挥的生物学功能进行综述，为对细菌致病机制和防治细菌感染的相关研究提供新的思路和参考借鉴。     

Biological transformations of steroidal compounds: A review

Microbial transformation is an important tool for structural modification of organic compounds, especially natural products with complex structures like steroids. It can be used to synthesize chemical structures that are difficult to obtain by ordinary methods and as a model of mammalian metabolism due to similarity between mammalian and microbial enzyme systems. During recent years research has been focused on the structural modifications of bioactive steroids by using various microorganisms, in order to obtain biologically potent compounds with diverse structures. Steroidal compounds are responsible for important biological functions in the cells and manifest a variety of activities. This article covers the microbial transformation of sterols, steroidal hormones and some new types of steroids known as bufadienolides. Emphasis has placed on reporting metabolites that may be of general interest and on the practical aspects of work in the field of microbial transformations. The review covers the literature from 1994 to 2011.     

Medicinally important secondary metabolites in recombinant microorganisms or plants: Progress in alkaloid biosynthesis

Plants produce a high diversity of natural products or secondary metabolites which are important for the communication of plants with other organisms. A prominent function is the protection against herbivores and/or microbial pathogens. Some natural products are also involved in defence against abiotic stress, e.g. UV-B exposure. Many of the secondary metabolites have interesting biological properties and quite a number are of medicinal importance. Because the production of the valuable natural products, such as the anticancer drugs paclitaxel, vinblastine or camptothecin in plants is a costly process, biotechnological alternatives to produce these alkaloids more economically become increasingly important. This review provides an overview of the state of art to produce alkaloids in recombinant microorganisms, such as bacteria or yeast. Some progress has been made in metabolic engineering usually employing a single recombinant alkaloid gene. More importantly, for benzylisoquinoline, monoterpene indole and diterpene alkaloids (taxanes) as well as some terpenoids and phenolics the proof of concept for production of complex alkaloids in recombinant Escherichia coli and yeast has already been achieved. In a long-term perspective, it will probably be possible to generate gene cassettes for complete pathways, which could then be used for production of valuable natural products in bioreactors or for metabolic engineering of crop plants. This will improve their resistance against herbivores and/or microbial pathogens.     

一株促甲烷氧化假单胞菌Pseudomonas putida P7的分离及电活性特征

微生物胞外呼吸是厌氧环境中控制性能量代谢方式,直接驱动着C、N、S、Fe等关键元素的生物地球化学循环。微生物纳米导线（Microbial nanowires）的发现,被认为是微生物胞外呼吸的里程碑事件,推动了电微生物学（Electromicrobiology）的形成与发展。微生物纳米导线是一类由微生物合成的,具有导电性的纤维状表面附属结构。通过细菌纳米导线,微生物胞内代谢产生的电子可以长距离输送到胞外受体或其他微生物,改变了电子传递链仅仅局限于细胞胞内的认识,从而大大拓展了微生物-胞外环境互作的范围。微生物纳米导线的良好导电性,赋予了其作为天然纳米材料的广阔应用前景。目前,微生物纳米导线的导电机制、生态功能及其在生物材料、生物能源、生物修复及人体健康多领域的应用,已经成为新兴电微生物学的前沿与热点。然而,微生物纳米导线的生物学、生态学功能尚不清楚,它的电子传递机制仍存在分歧。本文在系统性总结微生物纳米导线性质、功能的基础上,以Geobacter sulfurreducens和Shewanella oneidensis纳米导线为模型,详细阐述了纳米导线的组成与结构、表征与测量方法、导电理论（类金属导电学说与电子跃迁学说）及其潜在的应用,最后提出了未来微生物纳米导线研究的重点方向、挑战与机遇。     

Anhydrobiosis: Inside yeast cells

Under natural conditions yeast cells as well as other microorganisms are regularly subjected to the influence of severe drought, which leads to their serious dehydration. The dry seasons are then changed by rains and there is a restoration of normal water potential inside the cells. To survive such seasonal changes a lot of vegetative microbial cells, which belong to various genera and species, may be able to enter into a state of anhydrobiosis, in which their metabolism is temporarily and reversibly suspended or delayed. This evolutionarily developed adaptation to extreme conditions of the environment is widely used for practical goals – for conservation of microorganisms in collections, for maintenance and long storage of different important strain-producers and for other various biotechnological purposes. This current review presents the most important data obtained mainly in the studies of the structural and functional changes in yeast cells during dehydration. It describes the changes of the main organelles of eukaryotic cells and their role in cell survival in a dry state. The review provides information regarding the role of water in the structure and functions of biological macromolecules and membranes. Some important intracellular protective reactions of eukaryotic organisms, which were revealed in these studies and may have more general importance, are also discussed. The results of the studies of yeast anhydrobiosis summarized in the review show the possibilities of improving the conservation and long-term storage of various microorganisms and of increasing the quality of industrially produced dry microbial preparations.     

Ustilago maydis secondary metabolism-from genomics to biochemistry

The dimorphic phytopathogenic fungus Ustilago maydis encounters different environments during its life cycle. As free-living unicellular haploid cell, the fungus must compete with other microorganisms for space and nutrients. As a pathogen, it also has to withstand the defense reactions of its host plant corn and to subvert the plant metabolism for its own purposes. During these interactions small molecules produced by the fungus serve important functions in the communication with its host and other organisms. The genome sequence of U. maydis makes it possible to deduce the full inventory of enzymatic functions that are involved in the production of these secondary metabolites. Although the fungus is known to secrete interesting small molecules the genome contains surprisingly few genes involved in the biosynthesis of polyketides (PKS) and non-ribosomal peptide synthetases (NRPS). Additional genes predicted to be part of secondary metabolism are located in subtelomeric regions suggesting that they are subject to high genetic and genomic variation. Here we review the pathways for the production of extracellular glycolipids that serve as biosurfactants, iron-chelating siderophores, tryptophan-derived indole pigments and indole acetic acid, the elucidation of which has greatly profited from the availability of the U. maydis genome sequence.     

Volatile affairs in microbial interactions

Microorganisms are important factors in shaping our environment. One key characteristic that has been neglected for a long time is the ability of microorganisms to release chemically diverse volatile compounds. At present, it is clear that the blend of volatiles released by microorganisms can be very complex and often includes many unknown compounds for which the chemical structures remain to be elucidated. The biggest challenge now is to unravel the biological and ecological functions of these microbial volatiles. There is increasing evidence that microbial volatiles can act as infochemicals in interactions among microbes and between microbes and their eukaryotic hosts. Here, we review and discuss recent advances in understanding the natural roles of volatiles in microbe–microbe interactions. Specific emphasis will be given to the antimicrobial activities of microbial volatiles and their effects on bacterial quorum sensing, motility, gene expression and antibiotic resistance.